Sunday, July 19, 2009

Okay, If I Had to Drive a Gremlin. . .

. . .it would need to have its very own accessory, a matching battery powered Gremlin Mini-Me. Now, that is the way to make a Gremlin appealing to me! Before this discussion goes any further, let me add that this Gremlin and all the others at the AMO car show in Collinsville yesterday were very nice and were fun to see. My personal dislike of Gremlins doesn't mean I can't appreciate the hard work these people have put into finding parts, cleaning up, fixing up, perfecting, etc., their chosen AMCs! I can't imagine the sheer amount of time and hard work that goes into restoring an automobile, and those who finish such a project certainly have my admiration.

Definitely, I want to make sure people know this is just a personal opinion thing, this reaction I have to most Gremlins. In case I haven't mentioned it, you have to know about the ongoing "discussion" in our household, the one about some of the ugliest cars ever collected by gearheads with a fondness for American Motors Corporation products. The discussion is mainly about how much my husband (yep, AMC nut) loves the Gremlin he has setting in his garage and about how much I (nope, not that AMC nutty) fairly detest the thing (at least enough to enjoy making all kinds of snide remarks about its shape, color, whatever). Oh, there are plenty of AMC's that make me drool in admiration. Those would be Marlins, Javelins, AMXs, Rebels (unless they are pale yellow with NASA/duct tape silver upholstery), some Ambassadors, Rambler station wagons, and SC/Ramblers. But Gremlins or Pacers? Umm, no can do, and Ricky knows this. This knowledge that his wife's aversion to cars that resemble a pair of Hush Puppy suede shoes with wheels slapped on the bottom is exactly what fuels his glee when he's cruising eBay looking for old cars in need of a home. "Oh, Bunny, look at this one! It's within driving distance. It even has a Levi Strauss interior. . ." generally elicits a few pat responses from moi:

Ewwwwwwwwww! It's a Gremlin.

Hey, wait, though. . .I do like a Levi's interior!

But, still, it's a Gremlin. Ewwwwwwww.

I just can't help it. Please forgive me, Gremlin lovers! If it gets me any mercy, please, take into consideration that I do absolutely adore the Gremlin emblem. Such a cute emblem! It really gives those cars a special touch. Anyway, live and let live, and all that :)

Perhaps there was a reason that it was introduced on April Fools Day?? ;o)

That aside, in my nosey around the web to discover I also saw the Chevrolet Vega. If needs must - I would have hung out for the release of that ;o)Of course I was too young to be driving at the time those cars were released - so in this case hindsight is everything!